The million dollar question.

My personal view is that Pagani got just a little too greedy. They already have rave reviews about performance and craftsmanship, and rightly so. But its obvious that you don't buy a Huayra simply for going fast- if that were the case there are a ton of other options. You buy a Pagani for the whole package. Craftsmanship, uniqueness from other cars, good drivability, e.t.c. The automotive world has acknowledged this. But for whatever reason, Pagani decided it wasn't good enough. They wanted the TG record too (probably to sit nicely with the Zonda Rs time). Unfortunately for them, they got caught out and now they are in a sticky situation. Plus their squeaky clean reputation is in the dumps.

Streetrod, like you, I'm a huge Pagani fan/ mentallist, but its high time we all accepted that Pagani cheated without trying to explain it away or comparing their actions to others,

The reason this is such a big issue is because Pagani has never been caught doing something like this previously. Until now, they were pretty much the angels of the automotive industry with a squeaky clean reputation. They could do no wrong. But now they've proved otherwise, It begs the question: what other bull**** are they prepared to do? And what have they previously done without being caught? To draw from Hammonds comment: Pagani no longer have that 'innocence' imo.
I think the Lance Armstrong analogy is appropriate here.

It wouldn't have been half as bad if they hadn't issued the press release trying to convince us all that they were street tyres. Like Matt has said, how stupid do they think we are? (You know, fool me once and all that.)

As for Top Gear? They must have known, but it doesn't really surprise me. At the end of the day, its an entertainment show. Most of their stuff is staged anyway. (thats not to say I dont hugely enjoy it).

As far as Pagani is concerned, it just leaves a bad taste in the mouths of fans like myself. Whilst I still love the brand (and their cars), I've lost a little of the massive respect I used to have for them.

 

A message I've just sent to Pirelli, through the "Contact Us" function on their official website:

Hello,

I'm sure you've been made aware of the the controversey surrounding the tires fitted to the Pagani Huayra when tested on the popular BBC automotive show Top Gear, during its Power Lap segment.

It has been my assertion that the tires in question are Pirelli racing slicks with grooves cut into them, for the purpose of achieving a faster lap time than would have been possible using the Huayra's standard-issue tires.

Pagani has confirmed in an official statement that the tires used by the Huayra for its Power Lap were in fact modified Zonda R racing slicks. They further went on to say that these tires were street legal.

It's my understanding that the constructution and certification processes for street legal tires are vastly different and more stringent than for racing tires. It is also my understanding that there are sidewall labelling requirements for street legal tires, that appear to be lacking from the Huayra's Power Lap tires, upon inspection of photographic evidence of said tires.

Based on this knowledge, it has been my conclusion that the modified Zonda R racing slicks that were fitted to the Huayra for the purpose of its Power Lap could not possibly be street legal as Pagani has stated.

I would appreciate your feedback on this manner. In addition, due to significant automotive press coverage of this situation, and the contradictions between Pagani's statement and known street tire design practice, I feel that an official Pirelli statement would be warranted at this time.

 

Well you will be glad to know that Pagani are still claiming the record at the Geneva show as you can see below. But a bit of a Freudian slip with the "hype car of the year"

 

Lol Hype car..

 

What tires are those?

 

Ive been trying to see..

Would be kick ass if they brought it on the same tire they used during the lap

 

They didn't. Photographer on the scene in Geneva says they look normal and "nothing like the tires used for the Dunsfold lap".

>8^)
ER

 

Pzero Corsa

 

That sucks..

 

Hope someone brings it up and we get a proper answer from Pagani. "OK we effed up and lied- twice but we're really sorry" would be better then hoping the saga fades into history.